Archives for: October 2007, 02

Barbeque is a very popular food in my part of the country. That is a really good thing for Type Os. I had my two favorite barbeque restaurants where I used to live. I could pick up a pound of brisket or turkey on the way home if I was running late for dinner. After we moved I was watching for a good barbeque place close by.

Of the two towns that are near us, the town in the direction of the main highway is bigger and has a lot of restaurants. We found a great barbeque restaurant there, but it is 7 miles away. With gas prices what they are, I hoped to find something closer.

I drive by one barbeque place every day on the way home from work. A few weeks ago when I made a quick trip to look in on my parents, I decided to stop there. I had vegetables in my refrigerator that I could eat with my fingers as I drove. I needed some meat. I ordered a third of a pound of brisket sliced extra lean. If you don't eat brisket, that means that you're asking them to trim off the fat that is on the bottom. Sometimes they charge a little more per pound, but it's worth it.

I got in the car, started on my way, and opened the package. They had not trimmed the fat. It was really messy to eat, especially while I was driving. Not only that, in my 1/3 pound, they had included an end piece of brisket. That is the hard piece that is sliced off first before you start getting good slices. Lots of restaurants shred the end pieces and mix them in with their chopped beef, but there is no way that they would have served me that if I had ordered sliced beef to eat in the restaurant.

Penny wise, pound foolish, I thought as I wiped my hands with a 5th Kleenex. I might have stopped there a couple of times a month. They saved a little money by ripping me off this time, but they lost me forever as a customer.

The town in the other direction is where I go to drop off my recycling. It is smaller, and is very short on restaurants that serve real food. There are a couple of sandwich shops, and a pancake house, but the choices for Type Os are not good. However, on the way to recycle, I noticed a barbeque place that was less than two miles from the house. Hurrah, I thought. I stopped and ordered a pound of brisket, extra lean. I'd have lunch for three days.

When I got home, it was tasty and very lean. However, the next day, I found another end piece hidden at the bottom of the slices. Another restaurant has lost a loyal customer. If they will save a few cents by including a worthless piece of meat in a take out order, where else are they cutting corners in their restaurant? What fillers might be in the side orders to stretch them a little further? Penny wise, pound foolish. I'd never trust them again.